WHO approves trials for two new Ebola vaccines

The World Health Organization (WHO) has approved clinical trials for two new Ebola vaccines, as doctors fight to control the largest outbreak in the history of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). On Monday, WHO expert groups recommended adding two vaccine trials designed to fight the Bundibugyo strain, which has killed more than 5,300 people, most in the DRC, since May. Public health agencies have struggled to contain the Bundibugyo virus, which has a fatality rate of 50 percent due to the lack of a vaccine or treatments designed specifically for the strain.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said a trial that began last month used the Ervebo vaccine, which was approved for the Zaire strain of the Ebola virus but is not designed for Bundibugyo. Tedros said the new vaccines undergoing trials are designed specifically for the Bundibugyo virus. Results from the vaccine trial are expected in early 2027, the WHO reported.

The DRC’s National Institute for Biomedical Research is leading the trial, backed by the WHO and other partners, said Tedros.